Red Dragon Review

A Bit About the Movie

Red Dragon is a prequel to ‘The Silence of the Lambs’ and revolves around a retired FBI agent named Will Graham (played by Edward Norton) who is on the hunt for a serial killer known as ‘The Tooth Fairy’ (played by Ralph Fiennes). Will can not apprehend this psychopath alone, so he asks everyone’s favorite psychiatrist, Hannibal Lecter (played by Anthony Hopkins) for a hand in the investigation, which is actually pretty similar to the plot for ‘Silence of the Lambs’. The only difference being that Graham and Hannibal share a violent history with one another. The movie starts off with Graham paying Hannibal a visit to discuss a case both he and Lecter have been working on. Graham informs Lecter that every single victim in the investigation all share a connection; they are all missing body parts that can be used in some form of cooking. Will learns that Hannibal is responsible for the murders when he takes a gander at some of Hannibal’s particular recipes and this, of course, leads to a struggle where Graham captures the infamous cannibal, but not without sustaining a life threatening wound. The movie then jumps several years into the future where Jack Crawford recruits Will to aid in the capture of another mysterious serial killer because of Will’s keen imagination; putting himself in the shoes of the murderer. We then learn about Crawford’s real plan to have Will converse with Hannibal about the murders since both men share such incredible history. If I were Hannibal, I would just toy with Will the whole movie and point him in the wrong direction on purpose, but for the sake of the plot, he agrees to help Will once more. That is the basic plot, so now it is time to get into why this movie is worth your time.

What I Found Interesting

I noticed some parallels in the film being that I am a fan of ‘The Silence of the Lambs’. Both serial killers share an interesting back story and there is a line uttered in both films explaining that these people weren’t born criminals, but rather made into them by years of systematic abuse. I found it very interesting when Graham told his wife about ‘The Tooth Fairy’ after reading his diary because what he says goes back to what Hannibal said in the prequel. It made me think about what Hannibal told Graham in this film, saying that both he and Graham are very much alike, and the reason Graham caught Hannibal is because of how similar they are. I find it interesting when the hero and the villain share a similar mindset because that concept makes me wonder about human nature and how there is a certain evil inside each and every one of us; Graham uses this “gift” to help people while Lecter uses it to slay and digest people. There was one other line in the movie that caught my eye where Hannibal says, “That blackout was an especially nice touch” and if you watched ‘Silence of the Lambs’ then you will know about a similar phrase he used when talking to Clarice. “Anthrax Island, that was an especially nice touch, Clarice”. It was almost like an Easter egg for fans of the franchise to catch so they could get a chuckle and I have to admit that I am one of them.

What Did I Enjoy About the Film

• I loved the characters in the film! Anthony Hopkins is brilliant as the psychopath, Hannibal Lecter and Edward Norton is memorable as the retired FBI agent who wants to help put away this ‘Tooth Fairy’ in order to save the lives of potential victims. I loved their dialogue in the film since it borrows a cliche I happen to enjoy very much; Monster and man working together to take down another monster with a few twists and turns thrown in. I also enjoyed the performance by Emma Watson as the romantic interest for ‘The Tooth Fairy’. She truly brings out the humanity in this monster and her performance carries every scene, especially since ‘The Tooth Fairy’ rarely speaks.
• I didn’t know it would be possible, but Ralph Fiennes as ‘The Tooth Fairy’ steals this film away from Lecter and the rest of the cast. I found his story to be very intriguing because the film puts you in his perspective multiple times and every time the movie cut back to him, I found myself glued to the screen. He is a tragic villain similar to how Buffalo Bill was in ‘Silence of the Lambs’, but in this film we get to delve into his character much further, which gives him more time to grow on the viewer. The movie makes you feel sorry for the villain even though he does many terrible things throughout the film. When he wanders around his house talking to inanimate objects I felt bad for the guy because he was trying desperately to be normal, but his troubled mind proved that task to be impossible.
• The movie has great pacing as well! I never felt like the movie dragged and the dialogue kept my interest up until the very end. When the film decides to halt for a moment, especially when Will is investigating the crime scenes, it felt necessary and not just useless padding.
• The introduction to the film had a great score! The music sets the tone for the kind of movie you are about to watch and I adored every minute of it. I loved how the introduction takes place inside the killer’s journal, which highlights Lecter’s trial and shows a glimpse of the killer’s psyche.

Something I Am Mixed About

This is not really a major problem, but I did feel like Will’s family could have been fleshed out a little bit more. There is an instance where Graham trains his wife to use a gun to protect herself, but there really isn’t anything in the movie to make me care about the family. The third act could have been much better if the film focused a little bit more on the family. It is only a minor nitpick but it was something I feel could have been executed a bit more effectively.

Fun Facts

1. Ralph Fiennes gained fifteen pounds of muscle for the role of Francis Dolarhyde. I could tell because he was a pretty build individual.
2. Ralph Fienne’s back tattoo took eight hours to apply! Wow, no bathroom breaks for eight hours? That must have been a fun day for him.
3. The Leeds’ house previously appeared in Ferris Bueller’s Day Off! Mind blown!
4. Michael Jackson lobbied for the role of Francis Dolarhyde! Don’t think I would have been able to take that seriously. Imagine Francis moon walking into every scene.
5. Anthony Hopkins said that this film would be his final portrayal of Hannibal Lecter! All hail Anthony Hopkins! You did a fantastic job playing the demented psychiatrist!
6. Did you know that it was originally written for Will to show his fear of Dr. Lecter? Norton decided that it was a better choice to have him not show his fear since he is a seasoned veteran. Brett Ratner came up with the idea of Graham having giant sweat stains following his meeting with Lecter.
7. Anthony Hopkins wanted the audience to see Lecter as being this evil serial killer instead of a likable anti-hero, so that was his goal while portraying Lecter for the final time. I think he succeeded with flying colors.
8. Edward Norton shares four scenes with Hannibal Lecter, the same number of times Clarice shared with Lecter in ‘Silence of the Lambs’. That is an eerie coincidence!
9. Michael Bay was offered the chance to direct! Imagine Hannibal Lecter followed by a bunch of explosions the entire film!
10. Many lines of Hannibal Lecter in this movie are original lines of Dr. Bloom in the book!

In Conclusion

I found this movie to be highly intriguing. Every time I watch it I find something new and interesting to talk about. I recently found out that there are some fun Easter eggs sprinkled in this film that ties back to the previous film. I loved all of the characters and Francis Dolarhyde steals this movie! Many of his scenes were tense, eerie, and interesting to watch. I felt generally sorry for the man even though he is a twisted monster with no empathy, whatsoever. Anthony Hopkins reprises his role for the final time in this film and he is great as the psychotic, Hannibal Lecter. I didn’t think it was possible for anybody to steal the movie away from Hopkins, but it definitely happened and that is nothing but a compliment to Ralph Fiennes. I thought that Edward Norton was memorable as a man with the ability to empathize with murderers. I could tell that there was some kind switch going off in his mind whenever he started piecing all the clues together. His imagination is both a gift and a curse and I completely bought his portrayal. There was one scene that made me wonder if he actually enjoyed being inside the mind of a killer, like he enjoys living out the fantasy shared by the killer. He had to stop himself at one point, otherwise, who knows what might have happened. He rides the line between good and evil and I enjoyed that aspect of his character very much. I think this is the best a prequel can possibly be without relying too much on the original movie. I recommend checking the movie out, especially if you love crime dramas. I am going to give this movie five stars out of five because it is so re-watchable and the characters are interesting. Make sure you add this film to your collection because it is well worthy of your time! If you enjoyed my review of this film then be sure to share this article around on social media! I would greatly appreciate it! Thank you!